The Burning Forest
by URNP
Summary: An old one-shot from 2012 with a terrible title. Bill wakes up after the C-130 plane crashes in a forest, wondering how he got there and what had happened to his team.


Bill's eyes fluttered opened. For a moment, all he saw were trees spinning and bright lights peeking through those trees, which he assumed were stars, through his blurry vision. He let out shallow breaths as he lay on his back, staring up at the night sky. When his vision cleared, a few moments later, he slowly turned his head to the right.

What he saw made his heart stop beating. A military jet, the one he and his teammates had fueled up in order to escape the city filed with ravenous horde of the infected, had crashed into a group of trees. The jet was reduced to nothing more than burning metal as a billow of smoke rose into the night sky, blurring the view. Some of the surrounding trees were missing branches, on fire, knocked down, or a combination of the three.

Other than the burning jet, the forest, the war veteran assumed they had crashed in, seemed to be deprived of life. There were no cries and howls of animals, no sounds of tree branches being disturbed, and no rustling of leaves except when a light breeze blew a moment later. Bill's eyes widened in horror when he realized that there were no signs of his friends. He remembered what had happened before the crash, but in pieces instead of a whole memory.

He and his team had settle down after a long battle with the infected just as the jet took flight. They threw aside their weapons as they conversed with one another about things he cannot recall. Bill remembered, at some point, that his team had asked the pilot questions about their destination. Eventually, he had drifted off to sleep, thinking he was going to get some real rest.

The four survivors had thought it was finally over; they were going to be safe. Those were the only pieces of his recent memory that he can recall. He did not even know what had caused the jet to crash or how they ended up in a forest. Bill, beginning to worry about the safety of his friends, decided to call out to them:

"Zoey... Louis... Francis..." His cries were weak.

Unsurprisingly, Bill didn't receive a response. He tried calling out again, hoping this time to receive some type of response. Again, no one replied to his cries. He decided to try to move.

Slowly he lifted his neck, followed by his back until he was in a sitting position. The war veteran looked down at himself, trying to see what injuries he had. He noticed through holes in his shirt that he had scratches across his abdomen, which were only deep enough to puncture the flesh. He did not know what had caused the scratches.

When he touched his face and felt dried crimson liquid on his fingertips, he realized that he probably had a broken nose. After discovering that he didn't have any serious injuries, just scratches and bruises, Bill decided to stand. He winced as he made a few attempts to get back onto his feet. Once he was standing, the war veteran began to move slowly toward the burning jet.

He did not want to get too close to it; just close enough to see if he can find the bodies of his team.

"People, are you there?" Bill called, before wincing from pain that suddenly spread across his body.

Just like before, he did not get any response. When he thought that he had gotten close enough to the plane, he stopped walking. From where he stood, Bill didn't see anything that would indicate the presence of any of his teammates. Suddenly, he felt a cold hand wrapped around his.

Startled, Bill spun sound to see a witch holding his hand. She gave him a sad gaze with tears in her eyes. He didn't know how this witch got here or why she held his hand, but he figured that he had to get away from her and find his team. Bill did not even care about why she was crying.

Luckily, for the war veteran, the witch didn't have a strong grip on his hand, so he was able to break free. As soon as he did, Bill quickly made his way toward nearby trees. A few feet from the burning trees, he dared a glance over his shoulder - and saw the witch coming after him! She shrieked as she outstretched her arms, trying to grab the old man while she chased after him.

He knew she was faster than he was, with or without good health, so he hurried his pace. What did she want from him, anyway? Bill was nearly to the trees when he felt one of her nails brushed against his back. He immediately jerked forward, slammed his head against a tree, and then slid down onto the grass.

He lay face down, dazed, for a few moments before turning his head. What Bill saw made his eyes bugged out. The burnt bodies of his teammates _and_ the pilot were not far from where he lay. He blinked repeatedly, realizing why nobody responded to his calls.

"This is going to hell in a hand basket real fast!" Bill yelled, terrified.

Just then, he heard the sound of leaves crunching. He turned back, then blinked some more upon seeing the witch stand behind him with eyes glowing brightly as she stared down at him. Bill met her gaze, wide eyed, while the witch clapped her hands, and then rubbed them greedily. She had an evil grin on her ash-colored face.

At that moment, the war veteran realized that the witch was the one who slashed his chest back on the jet. Wait, how did she get on the plane with them?

"W-what are you going to do?" he asked, still terrified.

The witch didn't reply as she began to slowly approach him. Bill scrambled to his feet, and then reached his hand into his gun holster, trying to locate his pistol. To his horror, he did not feel his pistol! Bill backed up until his back touched the tree, then raised both hands as the witch continued to approach him.

She reached her arm toward him, and then placed her hand on his cheek. He stared at her in horror as the witch affectionately rubbed his cheek and side burn. The infected woman's glowing eyes stared back at him as she did so. Bill shut his eyes as he went into his thoughts.

 _There must be somethin' I can do to get outta here,_ he thought.

The witch let out a moan as she rubbed his cheek. Bill's eyes flew open upon having an idea.

 _If I knock down one of these branches onto this bitch, I can set her on fire and get outta here,_ he thought. _I ain't trying to get burned, though_.

Bill looked up and noticed that a partially burning tree branch was just in his reach. He decided to reach up and grab the branch. Suddenly, the witch paused. He repeatedly blinked upon realizing she had stopped rubbing his face.

Bill watched as the witch unexpectedly wrapped her arms around him before moving closer to him. Their faces were now so close that their noses were touching. He blinked repeatedly, knowing what she was about to do. He quickly grabbed, then pulled down the branch.

The branch broke off the tree and, to the war veteran's horror, fell onto him _and_ the witch! The witch shrieked in pain as she ran around. Bill also ran around, looking for a source of water, so he could put the fire out. Unfortunately, for him, there was no water around.

He really should have thought his plan through before he'd pulled down that branch. After several minutes of shrieks of agony, both Bill and the witch were dead. Like his teammates and the jet pilot, their bodies were charred. Smoke continued to rise into the night sky from the burning jet, blurring the view of those who may be nearby.

Bill did not have to worry about that anymore.

XXX

Author's note: This was originally written on June 28, 2012. I somewhat updated the writing.


End file.
